Unfortunately, Aha was an exception.
Because Aha's abilities and methods were far too terrifying, and he was connected to nearly all the Aeons. He had even once infiltrated the Star Rail in the guise of a mortal, hiding aboard the train for more than a year before finally finding an opportunity to blow half the train and an entire planet to smithereens.
"Join the City Builders..."
Just as it was Kliper's turn, Aha interrupted him again.
He pointed at Kliper, then said apologetically to Kiana, "This big rock is the Aeon of Preservation. He spends every day either building walls or on his way to build walls. His Path power is basically putting up shields and protecting his teammates."
Kliper: "What you said isn't wrong, but why does it sound so upsetting?"
"May all sentient beings receive what they seek."
"Right, this fellow is Yaoshi, the Aeon of Abundance. If you choose the Abundance Path, you'll become what people call a healer. By the way, he has a male body and a feminine appearance—not a flat-chested young woman."
Yaoshi: ...
Fortunately, Yaoshi had a good temper. He would respond whenever someone prayed to him; otherwise, he might have been tempted to beat people with the rice stalk in his hand.
Kiana suddenly felt that Paths and Aeons were nothing special after all.
What else could Kiana say? She could only sigh, As expected of you, Aha.
If Aha's true body had not gone missing, and if even the power of a single avatar had been enough to make everyone else helpless, then with Aha's penchant for causing trouble, he would probably have been hunted down long ago.
Look at poor Yaoshi. Lan had been chasing him for who knew how long, while Aha continued to enjoy himself every day.
Suddenly, Kiana remembered the most straightforward way to determine someone's identity by their Path faction.
You simply threw an Abundance pest into a crowd.
Those who ran away carrying the pest were followers of Abundance and Joy;
those who chased after it and attacked were followers of the Hunt and Joy;
those who attacked both sides were followers of Destruction and Joy;
those who stacked shields nearby were followers of Preservation and Joy;
those who laughed uproariously were followers of Joy;
those who stood motionless were followers of Nihility and Joy;
those who babbled incomprehensibly were followers of Enigmata and Joy;
those who mediated from the sidelines were followers of Equilibrium and Joy;
those who formed factions were followers of Harmony and Joy;
those who pontificated about the world were followers of Erudition and Joy;
those who took pictures with cameras were followers of Remembrance and Joy;
and those who came by train to watch were followers of Trailblaze and Joy.
"Don't just stand there in a daze. Hurry up and choose. Once you've finished choosing, we can move on to the next topic. Aha has been looking forward to seeing the fun for a long time."
Kiana clicked her tongue. Unfortunately, there were too few choices—only Destruction, Preservation, and Abundance. Destruction perhaps corresponded to her identity as a Herrscher, Preservation came from the will of the Kaslana family, and Abundance perhaps represented the Shaniyat family.
After careful consideration, Kiana made her choice. In the end, she chose Abundance.
Aha had said one thing that was absolutely right: Kiana was definitely a seedling of Joy, because she did not actually want to become a healer.
Instead, she wanted to use the power of Abundance to help her allies, then suddenly raise her weapon and punch her enemies into the ground. Wouldn't that be an amusing sight?
Aha also guessed her thoughts from her expression. Ignoring the strange looks around him, he burst into loud laughter.
Next came the choice of faction.
However, since Aha had taken the initiative to recruit her, the few Aeons who had still been interested in winning Kiana over chose to leave.
But if Kiana had been given a choice, she truly did not want to choose Aha and become an Envoy of Joy.
No matter how generous Aha was or how much he seemed to care for her now, when she thought about everything he had done and all the trouble he had caused over the years, Kiana was genuinely afraid that the moment she joined Joy, he would turn around and trick her.
"You look very conflicted. Relax, relax. I can make you an Envoy of Aha without revealing it to anyone else, so you won't have to worry about that little mascot on Akiwilli's train becoming wary of you."
Kiana had still been hesitating, but after hearing Aha's words, she immediately made up her mind.
That's right. I absolutely must not become an Envoy of Joy. Aha blew up the train before. Who knows, Pom-Pom may have noticed something. It wouldn't be good if he got angry again.
"No, I'll still..."
"Don't refuse. But Aha isn't like those other fellows; he isn't as petty as they are. So I can help you twice. All you need to do is shout, 'Aha is so awesome!' and I'll lend you a hand. Hahahaha..."
Amid Aha's laughter, Kiana opened her eyes. She saw everyone fighting the "Cocolia" formed from the Stellaron, while the real Cocolia had been locked inside the cage sealing away the Stellaron.
If there had not been two Cocolias here, events would have returned to their original course once again.
"Wait. The Stellaron disappeared, and then it turned into this. Don't tell me this was the Stellaron's doing too?"
No one paid any attention to the Kiana who had just awakened. At that moment, the Stellaron had already raised the ice spear in her hand.
"Why resist? Why reject the arrival of the new era? Since that's the case, become the foundation stones of the new century!"
As she rose into the air, the Creation Engine behind her also activated, and countless Void creatures appeared nearby.
Even though all of them were Pathstriders, facing such a situation still left them scrambling for their lives—until Himeko's voice came through.
"We saw it from the train. We saw how this huge thing stood up. But the energy around it is too chaotic, and the railgun is also suffering from unknown interference, so we can't provide support. Retreat for now. We'll head over to support you."
Listening to Himeko's voice, Kiana felt that the chaotic energy and interference with the railgun were probably Aha's handiwork again.
Moreover, he had no intention of hiding it. Whether it was his true body or merely an avatar, his voice reached Kiana's ear.
"Hahaha, looks like you've run into a crisis. I heard that in the Xianzhou, transactions involve something called an inspection. Aha thinks that sounds interesting, so Aha wants you to inspect the goods too. Let me give you a taste of the power of Joy."
"I remember you said that having an uncontrollable mouth was frustrating. Hurry, shout the password, then say the coolest line you can think of. Aha will help you out. Make sure it's cool!"
Just as the people on the Creation Platform were preparing to retreat, they suddenly heard the unconscious Kiana shout:
"Fuck, Aha is so awesome!"
Whether it was because snow suddenly began falling around them or because Kiana had deliberately drawn out the words, the others heard it as:
"Fuck Aha, so awesome!"
Chapter 43: Heavenly Fire, Draw!
"Hahahaha..."
Amid wave after wave of laughter, Kiana felt strength fill her body. Remembering what Aha had said earlier, she knew that this was the moment to deliver a cool line and turn the situation around.
But Kiana had already lost the mood to fool around with Aha. Seeing the railgun fail to fire as the Creation Engine slammed a fist into the ground, she watched as March 7th used the power of Preservation to block most of the damage for everyone.
Even so, without exception, everyone suffered serious injuries.
March 7th, who had been standing at the very front, was hurt the worst. Bright-red blood ran down from the corner of her forehead, while the exposed parts of her body were slashed by flying gravel, leaving streaks of blood. Droplets fell to the ground one after another.
Kiana felt a string in her mind snap.
On this planet forged from ice and snow, at this moment when the planet's people faced life and death, while someone beside her was under threat—
As a member of the Kaslana family, what line could be more fitting than this?
As Kiana's voice rang out, a golden phantom greatsword slowly solidified and appeared in her hand.
The temperature around her also rose rapidly.
"It has nothing to do with choice, nothing to do with life or death."
"At this moment, the ideals of all people converge into one grand wish."
"This time, I'll load my life into the barrel, solely to save the people I care about!"
"Heavenly Fire, draw!"
Blazing light shot into the sky like the fire of the sun, striking directly toward the joint of the Creation Engine, which had just withdrawn its fist and was preparing to attack again.
When the explosion faded, everyone saw that the joint of the Creation Engine's arm had already melted into iron. A massive mechanical severed limb crashed onto the platform with a bang.
"Tch. It's nothing but a last struggle. How many times can you use that power?"
Just as "Cocolia" had said, Kiana could use this ability only once for the moment because of Aha's assistance. Whether it was due to Sacred Relic of the Heavenly Fire or Aha's power, Kiana now felt as though her body were about to explode.
She had originally planned to strike again, knock the Creation Engine down completely, or deal with the true culprit once and for all.
Unfortunately, the light of a firefly lasted only an instant.
The Heavenly Fire greatsword in Kiana's hand turned into countless motes of light and dispersed into the air. The power Aha had granted her also vanished completely. Once that power was gone, Kiana instantly lost most of her strength. She could not even maintain her ability to float in the air.
Fortunately, before Kiana hit the ground, Seele rushed to the spot where she was about to land as if she had teleported, catching Kiana in her arms.
"Don't try to be a lone savior. But it seems you weren't lying. What you said in the Lower District was all true."
The badly injured March 7th and Kiana were brought to the rear of the group.
Kiana also personally witnessed Stelle obtain the Preservation Path. Holding the Flame Spear aloft, she led everyone to victory, just as the first Supreme Guardian had done when facing enemies from beyond the heavens.
The real Cocolia might have given up, or perhaps she still had not abandoned the future promised by the Stellaron. But when she saw Stelle holding the Flame Spear, she saw in her the shadow of generations of Supreme Guardians, as well as what was supposedly the will of Amber.
"It seems I really was wrong."
But then she noticed that her daughter had suddenly knelt at the place where the Stellaron's incarnation had vanished.
"Mother... did you ever... awaken from the dream?"
Bronya gazed at the aurora in the sky, murmuring as if mourning the passing of her mother.
Seele, standing beside her, was no longer like she had been before. Instead, she silently stood at Bronya's side like a wife, pulled Bronya to her feet, and wiped away the tears that had appeared at the corners of her eyes.
"Um... I hate to ruin the mood, but isn't Cocolia still alive? Did you get so caught up in the fight that you forgot the real Cocolia is still hanging up there?"
Kiana, who had stepped onto the Abundance Path, had already recovered completely. The injuries on March 7th beside her had also been treated.
But Kiana could not understand why Bronya looked as though Cocolia had died. Wasn't Cocolia locked inside the cage that was supposed to seal away the Stellaron? Had no one really gone to check on her?
Bronya: ...
Seele: ...
The movements of both women froze. They had fought too seriously just now. Looking at that familiar face and hearing that familiar voice had made Bronya forget that this was not her real mother.
Bronya looked up at Cocolia, who was still trapped in the cage above them with a strange expression.
She felt that she and Seele would not need to buy a home in the future. It was simply too awkward—so awkward that she could dig out a three-bedroom apartment with her toes.
After finally rescuing Cocolia, the awkward atmosphere on the field did not ease at all. Instead, it seemed to grow even worse.
To relieve the awkwardness, Kiana decided to sacrifice herself for everyone's sake.
"Lady Cocolia, do you still remember me?"
"You are?"
Hearing someone speak to her, Cocolia hurriedly came back to her senses and looked toward Kiana. As she stared at the white-haired ball before her, she felt inexplicably familiar with her, yet she did not seem to have met her before.
"Oh, right. You haven't seen me like this before."
Only then did Kiana remember that she had met Cocolia while wearing Herta's appearance. Later, Bronya had come to capture her, only for Kiana to abduct Bronya directly. As for Pela, she had been knocked unconscious before she could get a clear look.
"You should have seen me like this, right?"
After saying that, Kiana transformed into Herta's appearance. But the moment she did, she suddenly remembered a question.
"Wait, Bronie is also a genius hacker, and even another Silver Wolf. Why didn't I try to see whether I could directly control the Creation Engine?"
Kiana glanced at the Creation Engine, whose arm she had cut off, and decided not to say it aloud.
Cocolia recognized Kiana as soon as she saw her.
After all, she had felt inexplicably fond of her the moment they met. Besides, anyone who called her "Grandma Cocolia" upon their first meeting would probably be impossible for her to forget.
"To tell you the truth, I'm actually Bronya's future daughter. She and Seele..."
Seeing two figures suddenly appear beside her, Kiana felt a chill run down her back and hurriedly corrected herself.
"I'm joking. Look, my hair color isn't right either. Look at the tips of my hair. I'm actually the child born to you and Serval in the future—Bronya's younger sister, Bronie."
Cocolia remained silent for a long time. After listening to Kiana's two statements, she felt that the situation was no longer awkward.
Because her CPU had already burned out.
Chapter 44: Stir-Fried Potato Shreds with Ginger Shreds
Just as Cocolia felt that her CPU was about to burn out, the sound of footsteps crunching through the snow came from the distance. Everyone turned around and saw Serval appear not far away.
Because Kiana had not lowered her voice, her words carried clearly across the silent snowfield and reached Serval's ears.
Before you continue